


Operation Iraqi Freedom

by orphan_account



Series: of all our years [3]
Category: Generation Kill, True Blood
Genre: 2nd POV - Brad, Alternate Universe - Fusion, BAMF!Brad, Gen, Generation Kill & Highlander fusion, Immortal!Brad, follows Gen Kill episodes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-26
Updated: 2013-03-27
Packaged: 2017-12-06 14:10:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 2,740
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/736557
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Immortal!Brad throughout the invasion of Iraq.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. sword

-z-

 

“Fucking dress blues commercial,” Ray shakes his head, disdain evident in his voice, “that got so many fucking guys. And now look at us! Trombley hasn't killed anybody, I am half a world away from good Thai pussy, and Colbert is out here rolling around fuck-butt Iraq hunting for dragons in a MOPP suit that smells like four days of piss and ball sweat.  You should’ve rolled into battle with a sword, Brad, that would have fucking rocked.”

You don’t turn to him, but you can’t help the half-smile on your face.

“I don’t like swords,” you tell him, “I’ve always preferred my battle axe.”

“You fucking would, you fucking Viking.”

You smile because Ray has no idea the truth of his words.

 

-z-

 

End chapter.


	2. cocksucker

-z-

 

“They let him have a map?”

If you were a lesser man, you would be rolling your eyes.  Instead, you just sit back as Encino Man orders the wrong turn.

Half an hour later, you’re standing at the end of the road and at the back of the war.

“He’s our commander, Brad,” Nate says and you just shake your head.

And then you hear over the comms: “Colbert’s team took a wrong turn at the bridge,” and your hand goes to the radio, because _really?_

And with just the barest shake of his head, Nate settles you.  So you bite back on what you were going to say, letting instead your Iceman persona – the one you’ve adopted for this war – slide over you.

“ _Kuksugare_ ,” you mutter, _cocksucker_ , as you climb back into the Humvee.

“What?” Trombley looked up at you, surprised.

“Did you just curse in Swedish, Brad?” Ray asked.  “Because I know how to say ‘cocksucker’ in twenty different languages – and that was fucking Swedish.”

“Just turn this thing around,” you said, giving Ray the look that clearly told him to _shut-the-fuck-up-right-the-fuck-now_.

“It starts out with just one word,” Ray says, ignoring your look.  “Next thing you know, you’ll be as bad as Baptista – trying to give us orders is Swedish.  But we’re not going to understand you, Brad, so then the Hajis are going to win.  Promise me you won’t try to give us orders in Swedish!”

“Shut up, Ray.”

“Oh, thank God you’re back to English, I was worried.”

 

-z- 

 

End chapter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All Swedish from this point on will be from youswear.com and cross-referenced with Google Translate.


	3. officers

-z-

 

“Fucking officers will be the death of us yet,” you say as you walk into the night with Ray.  It’s something that you’ve said in nearly every war – and every time you’ve said it, it’s always been true.

There are always exceptions, of course.  If there were more officers like Nate Fick, you believe you would have less reasons to say this.  But the smart officers, like Nate, were the ones who grew tired of the bullshit and they got out, leaving the imbeciles to run things.

"Fucking officers," Ray echoes and the two of you walk along the berm and then down into the darkness.

You found the man soon enough – he had fallen asleep.

 

-z-

 

End chapter.


	4. guilt

-z-

 

After traveling with two very powerful, very possessive, very bloodthirsty vampires for a thousand years, you’ve seen death and destruction on all levels.

But when that RCT One unit rolls in and open fires on the hamlet you do your best to stop it.  And then the helo lets one go and you’re filled with an icy rage that you shove down deep.

Same with the shepherd boys.  You should’ve known better than to trust fucking _Trombley’s_ judgment of what was or wasn’t a threat.  You can already see the look Eric’s going to give you when you tell him the story.  He’s going to shake his head and tell you to shut up, he’s going to tell you that you’re getting soft in your old age, that the death of a few boys is to be expected in war.

A part of you wonders if Godric would feel the same as you.  You wonder if his growing compassion towards humans in recent years would allow him to feel anything about these two random boys.

So you stay underneath your Humvee, hammering away at nothing.  And when Rudy Reyes, one of your favorite humans, rolls under the Humvee with you – he doesn’t say anything, just quietly checks his gear.

 _That’s the thing I like about you, Rudy,_ you don’t say.  You want to tell him, to talk to him.  But the words are stuck on your tongue, weighed down by guilt and embarrassment. 

So you stay quiet.

It’s not until the threat of the Iraqi tanks that you finally close your eyes, swallow back your silence, and say:

“Ray, get on the TAD-six and TAD-seven.  Walt, get up on the berm and man the Mark-19.”

 

-z-

 

End chapter.


	5. God

-z-

 

“This is a fucking war,” you continue your lecture to your young Trombley.  “And we’re here as warriors.  So on top of everything else that’s expected of us, do we really need to drag him along and indulge in this make-believe bullshit?”

“Oh no,” you hear Ray lament.  “Not only do we have to worry about all the Charms you’ve eaten, now Brad’s just pissed off God.”

“God’s long ago learned not to listen to anything I have to say,” you say, leaning against the Humvee as Ray continues to fill in his Ranger grave. 

 

-z-

 

End chapter.


	6. grave

-z-

 

You and Ray had been sharing a grave since Nasiriyah.

Ray had simply stood at the edge of the grave you had dug and looked at you.  You stared back at him for a few moments before sighing and waving him in.  You pressed your lips to the side of his head that first night, something that wasn’t as much of a kiss as it was gentle reassurance that Ray was just fine, that you were there, that he was safe.

It was the more perceptive men you fought beside that subconsiously knew that you something _other_ , even if they didn’t realize it.  And it was these men who sought you out in the night, who crawled into your fox hole or grave, to take comfort in the almost imperceptible power you knew you exuded.

No one else on your team comments, though Walt sometimes looks like he wants to join you.  He never does.  Trombley had tried once but Ray chased him off with a rant about homoeroticism in war movies – you had smiled and refused to roll your eyes.

“Listen,” you say one night as Ray Person clambers into your grave, waiting until he’s settled against your side, “if I die, do not freak out.”

Ray opens his mouth to make a joke but before the words could pass his lips, you hold up a hand and say:

“Just _fucking_ do it.” 

Ray looks you in the eye, reading the seriousness in your face before quietly nodding.

And when you take a bullet to the head that was meant for either Scribe or Trombley – you’re still not sure, Ray had done just as he said he would do – he didn’t freak out. 

And when you gasped your way back into the world of the living, he simply shook his head and cursed, _goddamned fucking Immortals, can’t ever just come out and say what they are…_

 

-z-

 

End chapter.


	7. old

-z-

 

“So, how old are you?” Ray asked, glancing at you over his MRE.

“Old,” was all you said.

“Are you a vampire?” Trombley asked as he took a seat next to you.

“He’s not a fucking vampire,” Ray rolled his eyes, “he’s a fucking Immortal.  And I have to tell you, Brad, if someone comes for your head out here, I don’t think there’s much my _gun_ is going to do.”

“What the fuck do you know about Immortals?” you asked with a raised eyebrow.

“A friend of mine got shot,” he said with shrug. “Then he woke up in the morgue and called me to come get him.”

“Do you know any vampires?” Trombley continued.

“Your fascination with vampires is disconcerting,” you said.  “But, yes, I know a few vampires.  Even traveled with two of them.”

“Cool,” Trombley grinned, nodded his head and looked down at his hands.

“What happened to your friend?” you asked, turning back to Ray.

“Got his head chopped off,” Ray answered after a beat.  “One of those douche bags who only go after the very new.”

“I got lucky,” you said.  “After my first death, I was found by two powerful vampires.  One of them just so happened to be my great-grandfather.  They protected me from the older Immortals until I could match that sort of strength.”

“How many times have you died?” Trombley asked.

“I’ve been in every major war and even a few minor ones,” you said, “what do you think?”

Trombley just blinked up at you, trying to comprehend what you had just told him.

Ray opened his mouth to say something – probably something stupid – but Nate walked over and gave the order to mount up.

 

-z-

 

End chapter.


	8. hookers

-z-

 

“Quick question, Brad,” Ray asked, glancing over at you before turning back to the road.

“Yes, Ray-Ray,” you were in a good mood, you had managed to get almost four hours of uninterrupted sleep last night; you were feeling indulgent.

“When you were talking about Australian hookers,” he glanced at you again, “did you know that because of the vampires?  Did you order hookers for your vampires to feed on?”

Your good mood vanished.

“The vampires are not something we will be discussing, Person,” you muttered low enough so that only he could hear you.

“So the answer’s ‘yes’?” you had thought Trombley had been sleeping – and from the look on Ray’s face, he did too.

“Watch your sector, Trombley,” you said, turning back to watch the endless desert.

 

-z-

 

End chapter.


	9. warrior

z-

 

“I shot some motherfucker right in the grape, saw the back of his head bust off,” Poke said.  “I don’t feel nothing.  Is this how true warriors feel?”

You feel a tickle in your gut and you remember Eric and Godric, how vicious they were in the early days.  You remember how beautiful Eric was with a sword, how Godric looked as he danced from man to man – ripping out their throats and drowning himself in their blood.

You remember the times when you were human – when being a _warrior_ was all you knew. 

“Don’t fool yourself,” you say, leaning your head back against the Humvee, remembering the amount death and destruction you wrought with only a battle axe and knife and your bloodlust.  “We aren’t being warriors out here.  They’re just using us as machine operators, semi-skilled labor.”

 

-z-

 

End chapter.


	10. revealed

-z-

 

Ray had just turned off the Humvee, getting ready to settle in for the night, when you felt the buzz in the back of your head; you immediately got out and started looking around.

“What’s the matter, Brad?” Ray asked, then he seemed to realize what you were looking for.  “That’s the same look my friend had on him before he was attacked.”

“Contact at my nine,” Walt said, not having left his gun yet.

You looked in that direction – an Immortal in black was riding on a white horse in your direction.  He slowed the horse down to a walk with his hands out to the side.

You motioned for everyone else to stay back.

“You got a lot of nerve seeking me out in front of an entire platoon of marines,” you said.

“I am not such a fool that I would attack you now,” the man, a deceptively friendly smile on his face, Arabian accent thick.  “But tonight, we will fight.”

“We will?” you raised your eyebrows.

“Yes,” the smile fell from the man’s face.  “Or I will kill each of your men one by one in the night.”

You rushed forward, grabbed the horse’s halter and jerked it down, effectively bringing the animal to her knees and surprising her rider enough that you could grab a handful of the man’s clothes.  You brought him forward so that your noses were almost touching.

“I would like to see you try it,” you snarled coldly.

“P-P-Perhaps we will not fight,” the man stammered, obviously realizing how much he had underestimated you.

You didn’t say anything, just sneered as you pushed the man and the horse away from you.  The horse didn’t wait for her rider’s permission, instead doing the sensible thing and turning on her back hooves and sprinting away as fast as she could.

“What the fuck was that?” Encino Man demanded as he stormed up to you.

You turned around and saw that Nate was right behind you, an indiscernible look in his eyes.

“He just wanted to tell us how thankful he was for being liberated, sir,” Nate replied for you.  In a lower voice he said, “We’re going to talk about that later.”

“Goddamned fucking Iceman!” Ray cried as he came up to you and gave you a hug.  “You brought that horse down to its _knees_ , homes – how the fuck did you do that?  And that guy looked like he was about shit himself!”

Later that night, Nate came up to you.  You motioned for him to sit.

“These guys already know,” you said, motioning to Ray, Scribe, Walt, and Trombley.

“Okay,” he said as he sat.  “So why was that guy so adamant about fighting you?”

“I’m an Immortal and so was he,” you started.  “Immortals are always trying to kill other Immortals for their quickening – their essence.  The older you are, the more powerful your quickening is.”

“Also, vampires are real,” Ray said, snuggling deeper into his grave.

“Vampires,” Nate repeated.

“Yes,” you nodded, “I fight in wars to pass the time.”

“To pass the time…”

“Sir, are you okay?” Ray scrunched his eyebrows together.  “Brad, I think you broke him.”

“Just give him a moment, Ray,” you smirked because you could practically _see_ the wheels turning inside Nate’s mind, as he took all of your odd little quirks and compiled them and analyzed them.

“Son of a bitch,” Nate cursed as he leaned back.

“There he is,” Ray smiled and nudged Nate’s leg with his foot.  “Good to see you again, LT.”

“How old are you?” Nate asked.

“Old,” you and Ray said at the same time.  You turned and glared at him and he just shrugged.  So you turned back to your LT.

“I’m a bit over 800,” you said, “I’m not entirely sure.  We didn’t exactly maintain birth records where I came from.”

“Wait!” Ray jumped up.  “Why did you tell the LT how old you were but not your Ray-Ray?!”

“Because I like him more than I like you,” you said with a smile.

“Holy shit,” Nate was shaking his head.  “So that guy – he what?  He wanted to kill you for your essence?”

“My quickening, yes,” you nodded and settled into the grave next to Ray.  “But then he realized that he’ll need a few more centuries before he could possibly hope to best me.”

“What did he say that made you grab his horse like that?” Ray asked, looking up at you.

You looked down at him and paused.  Then you looked back up to Nate.

“He said that if I didn’t fight him he was going to kill each of you,” you looked back down to Ray.  “I don’t respond well to threats from lesser men.”

Ray chuckled and buried himself in closer to you.

Nate sighed and waved goodnight, leaving with promise of investigating this further.  But before he had the chance to ask any more questions, your time in Afghanistan was over.

 

-z-

 

End chapter.


	11. home

-z-

 

When you landed in San Diego, the full moon shone brightly outside. And you mourned that Godric and Eric had told you that they could not get away from their respective territories.

So when you saw Godric and Eric holding stupidly cheesy _welcome home!_ signs, you wanted to both cry and roll your eyes.

Instead you settled with picking Godric up and twirling him around as Eric wrapped himself around you – whispering of all the dark things he would do to you once you were alone.

Ray watched with raised eyebrows.  When you finally extricated yourself from Godric and Eric, he said:

“I fucking knew Immortals were pussy ass bitches.”

Both of your vampires refused to acknowledge Ray for the rest of the night.

 

-z- 

 

End chapter.


End file.
